No need for turbines - inquiry told

Shropshire can meet a renewable energy target set by the Government without a new windfarm near Market Drayton, a public inquiry has heard.

Seven 110-metre tall wind turbines planned for farmland at Lower Farm, Bearstone, would also be ineffective because Shropshire "has no coastal belt and is not windy enough", it has been claimed.

The comments were made yesterday by barrister Tina Douglass, representing windfarm protesters from pressure group Veto on Rural Turbine Expansion (Vortex).

Miss Douglass told the inquiry at Woore Victory Hall how biomass plants and "on-site" wind turbines, like those seen on homes and businesses, would do more to help the West Midlands reach a target of generating a 10th of its energy from renewable sources.

She criticised applicant Nuon Renewables over its choice of location for the windfarm saying it would "harm" the surrounding landscape and ought to be considered elsewhere.

But David Kenyon, a planning consultant appearing as a witness for Nuon, told the hearing Shropshire did possess sites benefiting from higher wind speed.

But, he said: "All the potential locations are within the Shropshire Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty where planning rules are tighter."

He said wind was one of the only renewable energy technologies that could help the region "get anywhere close" to meeting its energy targets.

The inquiry was sparked when Nuon Renewables contested the refusal by councils in Shropshire and Staffordshire of its plans for the windfarm and access road. Government planning inspector Trevor Cookson visited the site of the proposed windfarm yesterday.

Members of Vortex floated a blimp 110-metres into the sky to illustrate how tall the turbines will be if approved.

The inquiry continues.

By Tom Johannsen